The Times Are Changing: Millenials Are Ditching Alcohol in Favor of Marijuana

The Times Are Changing: Millenials Are Ditching Alcohol in Favor of Marijuana

Weed or wine? Millennials seem to be more interested in bongs than Bordeaux. But not by much.

In a recent study on Millenial Californian’s (generally defined as being born between 1984 and 2004), were asked their preference for using either alcohol or marijuana. The findings showed that 51% of Millenials prefer weed to wine.

With weed being newly legalized in California for recreational use, this may not be so surprising. What may worry winegrowers is that this shift will continue, which could have a pretty big impact on revenue.

OutCo CEO Lincoln Fish, who conducted the survey with Monocle Research, explains, “We found that for millennials, the choice between the two main recreational substances, alcohol and tobacco, has always been an easy one. Growing up with anti-tobacco messaging, the smoking rate for 18-29-year-olds in the U.S. has dropped by 22% over the past decade, leaving alcohol as the substance of choice.”

He continues: “But we are already seeing a decrease in alcohol sales, which means that cannabis is poised to be the new recreational substance of choice for many millennials and beyond.”

Many of the users explained that they chose to replace alcohol with marijuana because of included perception of safety, cost, and health.

Many stated that they spent more on alcohol than they would on high-quality cannabis. When it came to health, participants in the study said that while the effects of a hangover from alcohol lasted the entire next day, using a high volume of cannabis had no noticeable lasting effects – making them feel healthier and more active.